The Indigo King

The Indigo King. James A. Owen. 2008. Simon & Schuster. 375 pages.

The third adventure in the series mainly features Jack and John...Charles being conveniently away when this unexpected challenge/adventure finds them. Hugo Dyson, a friend, is introduced to readers, when he is thrown into the adventure. He may not know where he is or why he's there, but, he is perhaps *safer* than Jack and John...at least temporarily. For after Hugo disappears through the mystery-door-that-appears-out-of-nowhere, and that mystery door is shut by some well-meaning animals from the Archipelago of Dreams, their whole world changes...for the worse. The "real world" is dark and dangerous and ruled by the Winter King. The two aren't without some hope, they discover their good friend, Bert, who has been waiting and waiting for them. And he gives them hope, a time machine of Jules Verne and a mystery box. These friends, these caretakers, will have to journey through time--observing things very carefully--and have to use some wisdom and discretion on what to change and what not to change. Can they "fix" time and save the world? While the second adventure used Peter Pan and Jason and Medea for inspiration, this one uses King Arthur and Odysseus and the Trojan War. It also is the novel that introduces the young woman, Rose, and a young man Hank Morgan.

I really do LOVE this series!!! It is so fun to visit with these characters, and it's always interesting to meet new characters and see where they are going to take the story! This is a very significant book in the series, for it reveals the identity of the cartographer 'stuck' in the Keep of Time AND it reveals the identity of the Winter King.

This is also the book in the series that utilizes time travel most.

Read The Indigo King

• If you're a fan of fantasy, mythology, classic literature
• If you enjoy time travel; the more you LOVE time travel, the more you may appreciate this one!
• If you enjoy mystery and adventure mixed in with your fantasy
• If you've enjoyed the previous books in the series: Here There Be Dragons, The Search for the Red Dragon.

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

The Search for the Red Dragon

The Search for the Red Dragon. James A. Owen. Simon & Schuster. 384 pages.

I am so excited to be rereading this series. I think I will enjoy the new books in the series so much more after I reread these first books again. In this second adventure, Jack, Charles, and John are called to the Archipelago of Dreams by Laura Glue, a little girl with wings who shows up looking for the caretaker. The caretaker she means is an enemy of her grandfather. It is not Jack, Charles or John she is looking for, but a man named Jamie. But her need for help is very great...someone is kidnapping the children from the Archipelago of Dreams. Even the royal prince has been taken. Even some of the 'lost boys' are gone. Can these three caretakers solve a mystery? This one relies not only upon Peter Pan, but Greek mythology as well. Readers also learn that all is not well with time, and that their adventures in the Keep of Time has had an effect on both worlds and an old enemy has returned...

I enjoyed meeting Laura Glue, and her grandfather; I also enjoyed catching up with some of the other characters.

This is a fun series that is easy to recommend.

Read The Search for the Red Dragon

• IF you enjoy fantasy, mythology, classic literature
• If you enjoy fantasy-adventure quests
• If you read and enjoyed the first in the series, Here There Be Dragons
• If you have enjoyed the works of C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, James Barrie, etc.

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

Here There Be Dragons

Here There Be Dragons. James A. Owen. 2006. Simon & Schuster. 326 pages.

I was a little nervous to reread Here There Be Dragons by James A. Owen. I remember just loving it when I read it the first time. Would I still enjoy it? Still find the characters enjoyable? The plot twists clever? I was not disappointed. In this first adventure, readers meet Jack, Charles, and John, the three caretakers of the Imaginarium Geographica. They meet Bert, a former caretaker as well. Readers are introduced to a few other key characters as well: Tummler, Aven, Bug, Samaranth, the Cartographer, the Winter King, Magwitch, etc. (Just to name a few.) Many stories, tales, and myths are hinted at in this one. But. Mainly this book serves as a fun introduction into a brand new fantasy series. Readers are introduced to the 'real' world (England 1917 or 1918) and the 'imaginary' world of the Archipelago of Dreams, a world where there are dragons and dragon ships, elves, trolls, and talking animals. Readers also learn about the Keep of Time, which is central to the series....

I loved this one! I thought the storytelling was great!

Read Here There Be Dragons

• If you enjoy fantasy and/or mythology
• If you like dragons and other 'imaginary' creatures
• If you have enjoyed the works of C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, etc.
• If you love to read; this series draws richly from literature

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

Every Day

Every Day. David Levithan. 2012. Random House. 336 pages.

  Every Day is one of those books that I can (only) appreciate from a distance. I can see why it might make many people's best lists for the year. It's definitely unique and for the most part well written. The premise is strangely fascinating and potentially disturbing. "A," our narrator has spent each day of his/her life waking up in a different body. Sometimes male, sometimes female, etc. A's ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, weight, height, etc, being something newly discovered each morning. A almost always has something to say about the body, the life, the lifestyle, the choices that person is making or has made. It would be easy to say that A is all about tolerance, and that A's experiences make tolerance a must. A has "walked" in many shoes, after all, which gives A a feeling of being very wise, very above it all. But. I found A to be quite judgmental at times. I found A's assessments of individuals--or hosts--to be limited at best and unfair at worst. A doesn't choose to "access" host memories unless necessary, unless he chooses to make a connection of sorts. And A is all about judging things superficially and by appearances. A wakes up in a messy room, A concludes this, that and the other...for example. If a host likes this kind of music, then he/she must be this kind of person... A does this without thinking about it perhaps. He concludes--usually within a few minutes--a person's worth, if that person is "good" or "bad", nice or mean, popular or nerdy, or even happy or depressed. A dismisses some of the host bodies very quickly, making all sorts of judgments about them. A definitely has ideas of who is a loser and who isn't.

Most of the book is focused on A's quest to have a real relationship with an unforgettable girl despite A's physical limitations (not being in the same body day after day after day). And as an impossible relationship that is supposed to be true, true love, it works for some.

But I didn't exactly like the way A treated/judged some of the host-bodies.

Read Every Day

• If you are a fan of David Levithan and/or John Green
• If you are looking for a very unique book; A isn't your typical narrator!
• If you enjoy young adult literature

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

Revisiting Legend of the Wandering King

The Legend of the Wandering King. Laura Gallego Garcia. 2005. Scholastic. 224 pages.

When I first read this book in 2005, I thought it was one of the BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR. I just LOVED, LOVED, LOVED it absolutely. I thought it was a wonderfully, magically compelling read. I had no expectations for it, not my usual genre, an unfamiliar-to-me author, and I was just wowed. So I decided to reread it this week, and it was LOVELY. It was easy for me to see just why I loved it then and now. It is just an absorbing historical fantasy with an exotic atmospheric (almost fairy tale) feel to it. I enjoyed the setting, the characters, the storytelling. I loved the themes of this one: justice and mercy, redemption, destiny and free will. It's a novel that celebrates life, in a way, that even celebrates living rightly. I even see it as a coming-of-age or turning-around story.


My first review:

As a young man, Walid (Wah-leed) ibn Hujr dreamed of being a great man, a great ruler, and a great poet. He wanted to be loved, admired, appreciated, and respected. And since he was born a prince, son of King Hujr ruler of Kinda (in Arabia), he thought his dreams would be easily attained—especially since many thought he’d been touched by a djinn at birth. (Djinn being a genie). However, Walid failed to consider what fate had in mind.

A gifted and beloved prince, Walid was certain that he was the best poet in Kinda. Wanting to earn his father’s approval to go to Ukaz to enter a poetry contest, he organizes a smaller poetry contest for the kingdom of Kinda—arrogance and vanity assuring him that his winning is a matter of certainty.

However, when a peasant man—a carpet weaver—Hammad ibn al-Haddad, wins the contest three years in a row, the once magnanimous prince becomes embittered and resolves to make the peasant pay for his superiority. He forces the peasant to leave his home, his wife, and his three sons (a merchant, a shepherd, and his youngest son who has not chosen a career yet) to become the kingdom’s archivist and historian. He is told he must read and organize the kingdom’s archives (library). The task is monumental and overwhelming. He begs for mercy, but none is given. Walid does grant him this, however, if he can organize the archives and weave him a carpet, then he can be free to return to his home.

After four years, a thinner and wearier man presents himself to the King—Walid’s father having died in the subsequent years. Walid is surprised, yet wanting to remain a man of his word, he adds a stipulation to his earlier request: he must weave a carpet “that will contain the entire history of the human race” (62). Hammad is subsequently driven mad on his quest to create such a carpet, but in his madness finds unusual peace. Even Walid notices the change in him and becomes scared of him noting that there was something not quite human about him now. Once when Walid visited him in his workshop, Hammad tells him mysteriously, “Know that you are a mere mortal who has unleashed powers more terrible than a mighty storm, and that as a mortal, you cannot stop their wrath. Not anymore. It is far too late” (73).

After considering these seemingly prophetic words, Walid decides to release the man from his “curse” and allow him to go home. He opens the door to discover him dead, collapsed on the floor, and the completed carpet. One look at the carpet and Walid becomes convinced that the old man spoke the truth; in shame and fear, he locks the carpet into his secret room. But his life (and destiny) is forever changed. His kingdom begins to fall apart. His soldiers, his servants, his household begins to distrust him. Betrayal seems inevitable.

In the middle of the night, a former friend and advisor slip into the palace with two companions their goal to steal the king’s treasure. Instead of silver or gold, they find a carpet. The king is awakened by a nightmare about the carpet—and so being a paranoid man—he decides to make sure the carpet is still locked away. He discovers that his dream is all too true, just in time to receive a club on the head. As soon as he awakes, however, he dashes off to the stables for a horse so he can pursue the thieves; he’s still dressed in his nightgown!

Since his plan was foolhardy—to begin a dash across the desert without any provisions—it’s no surprise when he collapses in the sand certain that his death is hours away. He is saved by a stranger, an outlaw. But this close-call with death won’t be his last.

THE LEGEND OF THE WANDERING KING is an adventure quest with unexpected twists and turns. As Walid sets out on his journey to recover the carpet and restore past wrongs, what he discovers is that it is never too late to change one’s self. It is an adventurous quest to restore and redeem his own life.

Set in Arabia in 6th century C.E., THE LEGEND OF THE WANDERING KING is an exciting adventure story with probing questions. Is there such a thing as fate? Can a man ever truly make amends for his past mistakes? Is a man defined by his mistakes? Can a person really change his character?

First published in Spain in 2002, THE LEGEND OF THE WANDERING KING has been translated into English by Dan Bellm. It is rich in pre-Islamic Arabic culture. An author’s note explains the time and culture which is depicted in the book. (Yes, the book is based loosely on a pre-Islamic legendary poet, Imru’l Qays.) 



© 2012 Book of Just News To You

Revisiting Catching Fire and Mockingjay

I decided to reread The Hunger Games so I could watch the movie, after reading the first book in the series, I just had to finish the whole trilogy. It was my first time to reread any of the books in the series. Some things I remembered--the Quarter Quell twist--other things not as well (the fate of some of the characters). 

Catching Fire. Suzanne Collins. 2009. Scholastic. 400 pages.

I may love Catching Fire even more than The Hunger Games. Perhaps just because I already care about Katniss, Peeta, Gale, Haymitch, Cinna, etc. Or perhaps just because it introduces Finnick!!! This is a book that definitely surprised me the first time I read it, and it was great to finally get the chance to reread it after a few years. I think it was even more enjoyable. The Quarter Quell (75) Hunger Games definitely are intense, and very very very different from the Games from the first book. I also REALLY appreciated the brief glimpse of the other games, particularly the hunger games that Haymitch won. I wouldn't mind learning even more about him and about other victors and their games. 

Mockingjay. Suzanne Collins. 2010. Scholastic. 400 pages.   

Mockingjay is so different from The Hunger Games and Catching Fire. In a way, this is a book all about consequences and sacrifices. And as you might expect, rebellion, violence, and death. All three books are that life-or-death dramatic, this one is no exception. In some ways this one is even more intense because of who is involved and what is at stake. But. It is not a fun read. There's hardly a scene to be enjoyed--it's a matter of enduring so you can know what happens next...

I am glad I reread the series. I think watching the movie helped me get back to the books.

Read The Hunger Games trilogy:

• If you like twist-and-turns in action-packed dystopias
• If you enjoy dystopias with or without love triangles 
• If you like intense action and don't mind violence

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

Almost Home (MG)

Almost Home. Joan Bauer. 2012. Penguin. 240 pages.

 Even though this one has a dog on the cover, I knew I had to read it because it is Joan Bauer. I trust Bauer. I do. I trust her books to be good...if not great. Almost Home did not disappoint. It was a compelling read, an emotional one. For the heroine, Sugar Mae Cole, goes through some tough things. She's such a wonderful, lovable heroine. I loved the fact that writing was one of the ways she coped, loved to see her writing and sharing poetry, loved the fact that she was able to stay connected with her sixth grade teacher, Mr. Bennett, during her struggles. Since her grandfather died (loved reading her memories of him), things have not been easy for Sugar and her mom, they've been struggling with their finances for most of the year, and finally the worst happens: they lose their home. Readers don't often get to see glimpses of homeless life, of life in and out of shelters, though sometimes readers get a glimpse of life for kids in foster homes, but we get to see a bit of both in this one. (For after one last big disappointment, Sugar does end up in foster care.)

I thought the writing was amazing. I just loved it. And I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED the characterization. This one is RICH in minor characters which is always a bonus. I would definitely recommend this one....even if you don't trust dog books.

Read Almost Home

• If you enjoy children's books
• If you enjoy coming of age stories
• If you're looking for heroines who write creatively 
• If you like dog books, if you don't like dog books
• If you're looking for books about foster care 
• If you're looking for books about friendship and making your own family

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

The Second Life of Abigail Walker (MG)

The Second Life of Abigail Walker. Frances O'Roark Dowell. 2012. Simon & Schuster. 240 pages.

I really liked Frances O'Roark Dowell's newest book, the Second Life of Abigail Walker. It didn't wow me as much as Kristin Levine's The Lions of Little Rock OR Rebecca Stead's Liar & Spy, but, it was a gentle, satisfying exploration of first friendship. The heroine, Abigail Walker, does not have many friends, and what "friends" she did have once her true best friend moved away the year before, she's since lost because she was brave enough to stand up for herself. (Her new "friends" liked to pick on her every day, boss her around, call her names, criticize her, etc.) When she didn't say, "yes, you're right, throwing up would be a great way for me to lose weight," well she became "dead" to them and they started making her life miserable. But this is a hopeful story in many, many ways, a quirky story too. (Every other chapter was narrated by a fox.) For Abigail does find her way, she does make new friends, she is able to bring hope and joy to others just by her being herself. The message was a good one. And I did like many things about this one. I liked the friendship theme. I didn't enjoy the focus on Abby's weight as much, though I suppose it felt authentic enough in showing her daily struggles. But it was sad too. The pressure others put on her in addition to the messages she told herself, it all felt sad to me. I could see *why* she was turning to food. It isn't a book with an easy answer at the end, which was good, I suppose.

Personally, I think I would have loved this one a little bit more without the fox fantasy-elements. But I think it is still a good read.

Read The Second Life of Abigail Walker

• If you are a fan of Frances O'Roark Dowell
• If you like MG fiction, coming of age stories
• If you like stories about the healing powers of friendship

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

The Lions of Little Rock (MG)

The Lions of Little Rock. Kristin Levine. 2012. Penguin. 304 pages.

I talk a lot. Just not out loud where anyone can hear. At least I used to be that way. I'm no chatterbox now, but if you stop me on the street and ask me directions to the zoo, I'll answer you. Probably. If you're nice, I might even tell you a couple of different ways to get there. 

I loved, loved, loved Kristin Levine's The Lions of Little Rock. Since I had also LOVED The Best Bad Luck I Ever Had, I knew to expect great things from her, and I was not disappointed. I'm not sure which of the two is my favorite, favorite. I loved both books so much. All I can say is that I definitely want to reread them both!

I LOVED both Marlee and Liz. Marlee is a heroine that I found so easy to love. She's so shy, so wonderfully smart but painfully shy. So shy that her family--who loves and supports her--challenges her (in a good way) to speak five or six words a day. In the beginning, she's so reliant on her older sister, but through the novel, she becomes more confident and brave. But above all, she becomes more thoughtful. She takes time to think and consider, for the most part, what is right, what is true, over and above what is easy and what is comfortable.

Liz is a new girl who becomes Marlee's very first true best friend, but their friendship will soon be tested in Little Rock, Arkansas in the school year of 1958/1959...

I do enjoy historical fiction. I found the setting of this one to be so very fascinating. It is set one year after the Little Rock Nine, and readers learn about the year that public high schools were officially closed in order to avoid integration. It is simply a fascinating, compelling novel. I just couldn't put it down.

I did love the characters, and not just the main character(s). Readers get a chance to get to know all the people in Marlee's life, her mother and father, her older sister and brother, a few teachers, even a Sunday School teacher, I believe, the family's new maid, her classmates, her friends, those that bully her, etc. So many glimpses of people that felt so genuine.

I also LOVED the writing. I just LOVED, LOVED, LOVED it from start to finish. So lovely, it just has a "just right" feel to it.

Read The Lions of Little Rock

• If you love GREAT children's books, if you want to read one of the best books of the year
• If you love coming of age stories 
• If you like strong friendship stories
• If you enjoy historical fiction, this one is set in Little Rock, Arkansas, late 1950s
• If you like novels with complex characters
• If you are looking for a heroine who LOVES math  

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

No Crystal Stair

No Crystal Stair: A Documentary Novel of the Life and Work of Lewis Michaux, Harlem Bookseller. Vaunda Micheaux Nelson. Illustrated by R. Gregory Christie. 2012. Lerner. 188 pages. 

There were a few times when No Crystal Stair amazed me, and definitely there were times I found it interesting or fascinating. But. I didn't love this one enough to gush about it. It is a uniquely told story told in fragments, fragments which make for quick reading, for the most part. But also the fragments kept me separated, in a way, from the main character(s). It was a respectful distance. Readers meet an inspirational man with a big dream and determination to match it. A man convinced that books could make a difference, that is READING books could make a difference, that knowledge improves lives. The book chronicles his early life and comes to focus on his great success as a one-of-a-kind bookseller, owning a bookstore focusing exclusively on books written by African Americans or about African Americans. For those interested in race relations in the twentieth century--especially in the 1930s, 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s--this one could easily be considered a must read.  

Read No Crystal Stair

• If you are looking for a fictional novel based on true people and events
• If you are looking for an unusual, often brilliant, portrait of a man and the times in which he lived
• If you are looking to learn more about the Harlem Renaissance OR the Civil Rights movement

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

Jump Into the Sky (MG)

Jump Into the Sky. Shelley Pearsall. 2012. Random House. 352 pages.

It's been years since I've read a Shelley Pearsall novel, but I remember really loving those that I've read in the past. I really liked Jump Into the Sky. I'm not sure that I absolutely loved it. But it was a really good read. I just LOVED the main character, Levi Battle. I really loved his narrative voice, and I enjoyed seeing the world through his eyes. I enjoyed many of the characters, I especially liked Cal, Peaches, and baby Victory. (I loved hearing their love story!) I was so happy that this couple was able to open their hearts and home to Levi when he really needed someone--anyone--to care. And I was pleased that Levi had the opportunity--at last--to get to know his father.

The book was set during the last months of World War II, and it was an interesting read. I enjoyed learning about this historical period. I didn't know about the balloon bombs OR the African American paratroopers. So that was good. This isn't exactly a fast-paced action novel, more of a slow character-focused coming of age story. I enjoy coming-of-age stories AND I enjoy historical fiction.

I enjoyed the characters, the writing, the details great and small. 

Read Jump Into the Sky

• If you enjoy well-written, character-focused coming of age stories set during World War II
• If you are looking for a multicultural World War II read that discusses prejudice in and out of the military
• If you enjoy historical fiction with memorable narrators

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

Caught (MG)

Caught. (Missing #5) Margaret Peterson Haddix. 2012. Simon & Schuster. 352 pages.

  I have enjoyed Margaret Peterson Haddix's time-travel series for middle grade. Some of the books I've liked better than others, but, for the most part, I've enjoyed each one. In this fifth adventure, Jonah and Katherine face their biggest challenge so far. The book begins with the freezing of time. Jonah and Katherine are in school when time freezes. They know that something must have happened, but when and where?! They seek out others who have traveled in time--the only people unaffected so it seems by frozen time--but before they get the chance to do anything, Jonah and Katherine find themselves falling through time and landing in 1903. They have a few clues, they know Albert Einstein and his wife are somehow connected to their being there. But for the most part, these two are clueless and choosing to be invisible for as long as possible...but Albert Einstein's wife is clever and knows something is up....

Caught is a fast-paced read. I don't enjoy this series because the characters are well-developed and fascinating. I enjoy this series because of the story, the action, the history. I enjoy learning about different periods of history. I enjoy the author's notes at the end of each book. I like learning what is truth and what is fiction. I enjoy the time travel aspect of the story and the mystery behind it.

Read Caught

• If you've enjoyed the other titles in the Missing series by Margaret Peterson Haddix
• If you enjoy middle grade science fiction with a time travel element
• If you enjoy children's books with action and mystery

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

The Sweetest Spell (YA)

The Sweetest Spell. Suzanne Selfors. 2012. Walker & Company. 416 pages.

I was in the perfect mood for Suzanne Selfors' The Sweetest Spell. I loved the heroine, Emmeline Thistle. I enjoyed reading about her community, especially the husband market where the young women bid on the single men of the community. Since she was born with a deformed foot, and since the whole community distrusts her, she's not one of the young women joining in, at least not yet--she's just sixteen or seventeen. But the novel opens with a big disruption: soldiers arriving on that day to take away the men to fight the king's war. Days later, major flooding proves even more devastating to the community. Emmeline Thistle finds herself truly alone with nowhere to go, but as long as there are cows nearby, Emmeline will never be friendless.

I enjoyed this one so very much! I loved Emmeline. I loved Owen Oak, the love interest, who discovers her after the flood. I enjoyed so many characters--major and minor. And I really loved spending time in the world Selfor's created. I loved the storytelling, the adventure, the romance, the characters, the writing.

Read The Sweetest Spell

• If you enjoy fantasy with a historical feel
• If you enjoy fantasy with some romance
• If you are looking for some charm in your fantasy (I found it very delightful!)
• If you like reading about chocolate

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

Laugh with the Moon (MG)

Laugh with the Moon. Shana Burg. 2012. Random House. 256 pages.

I press my nose against the airplane window and breathe faster, faster, more, more, more. I try to erase what's outside. 

Clare Silver did NOT want to go to Africa with her father. She was barely coping with her life to begin with. She needs her friends, her school, her home to stay as close as possible to what they were before...before her mom died. But her father volunteered his services to the Global Health Project, and now father and daughter are adjusting to life in Malawi. (He's excited and committed.) Clare will be attending a local village school, wearing a school uniform, and learning a foreign language. She does make friends with a girl named Memory, and soon she starts liking a few others. But it isn't until she starts teaching English to the youngest students that she begins to feel like her life has meaning again...but life isn't without its great challenges. And Clare will be tested again and again...

Read Laugh with the Moon

• If you're interested in multicultural middle grade novels
• If you're interested in novels about grief, death and dying
• If you enjoy coming-of-age novels

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

The Bar Code Tattoo (YA)

The Bar Code Tattoo. Suzanne Weyn. 2004/2012. Scholastic. 256 pages.

The Bar Code Tattoo is a quick read that I ultimately found disappointing. Kayla is weeks away from turning seventeen, in just a few weeks she'll have to choose whether she wants to conform or rebel against society and the government. The tattoo is relatively new--at least to the United States, having been tested first in Europe and Asia. And the tattoo is changing lives, for better or worse. For some who receive it, their lives improve dramatically: new opportunities at work, pay increases, etc. For others, it ruins them almost completely. Some lose their jobs, their homes, their credit or money no longer being "good" enough to be accepted anywhere. Not that any of this is being publicized, not really. Those who speak out against the tattoo are in the minority--or so it seems. And while there are rebel groups out there, well, they don't have the power to change things. At least not yet. Kayla's mind is made up almost from the time of her father's death. She blames--and her mother blames--his suicide to the tattoo. He has NOT been the same since receiving it, the changes coming slowly but surely over a month or two. Kayla joins a group she learns about at school, and so her rebellion begins. It may not seem like much of a commitment at first, but Kayla will ultimately have to make some tough choices.

It is a quick read, very fast-paced, very plot-driven. It started off promising enough, but by the end I was disappointed. The last few chapters were odd.

Read The Bar Code Tattoo

• If you're looking for a light, quick read
• If you're looking for a futuristic (2025 or so?) read featuring conspiring evil governments, societies, scientists, corporations, etc. 

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

Vessel (YA)

Vessel. Sarah Beth Durst. 2012. Simon & Schuster. 424 pages.

Vessel is a good example of an almost book for me. It almost almost made me love it, but, not quite. I did enjoy it, for the most part. There were chapters that were quite satisfying, that gave me hope. But then there were places I felt a disconnect, and ultimately I didn't end up loving it as much as I had originally hoped. I definitely went into this one with high expectations. I thought it had the potential to be wow-worthy. And I think for some readers, it works well, really well. I am sure it will find readers that do love it.

Readers first meet Liyana, a young woman who is destined to be a "vessel" to her clan's goddess, Bayla. When the possession does not happen, when the goddess fails to come and take possession of this girl's body, well, her clan leaves her to die in the desert. She doesn't die, however, she is found by a god, Korbyn, a trickster god who has recently taken possession of his own human vessel. He has a message and a mission. Certain gods and goddesses have vanished from the Dreaming, including Bayla. The ceremonies have failed and the gods and goddesses are disappearing. He doesn't know where, though he tells her he felt a pull to the East, but he knows that they have to rescue them from false vessels and restore them to their worthy (human) vessels. For only if they are restored will the god's magic be able to heal the desert lands and save all the desert clans. Liyana is easy to convince; she finds Korbyn charming and swoon-worthy. But some of the other vessels won't be so easy to convince. These two must prepare to go on quite the adventure quest...

Readers also meet a super-mysterious emperor, but, I felt these sections weren't as compelling as the rest of the novel. (I didn't connect with them and was a bit puzzled by everything until the ending when things became clearer.)

For those that like fantasy and magic and storytelling, this one does have potential.

Read Vessel

• If you love fantasy, magic, gods and goddesses
• If you love storytelling, if you love storytelling cultures and mythologies
• If you love novels with world-building

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

Hanging by a Thread (YA)

Hanging By A Thread. Sophie Littlefield. 2012. Random House. 288 pages.

I had low expectations for this one because I don't generally like reading paranormal fiction. The heroine of this one, Clare, has a gift, a legacy. She touches fabric--clothes to be exact--and gets visions of their owners. She's recently moved to her mom's old hometown, and, well, there happens to be an ongoing mystery. Two murders over the past two summers occurring around the fourth of July. She stumbles across the jean jacket of the previous year's victim, and has a strong reaction to it, her strongest vision so far. A vision which prompts her to start investigating the two crimes. (She has a feeling they are connected.) It won't be easy to solve this one, and it may just lead her into danger if the murderer is still around, but, how can she ignore what she knows to be true?

I liked this one so much more than I thought I would. It's a paranormal romance and I still happened to like it.

Read Hanging By A Thread

• If you enjoy mysteries OR paranormal fiction
• If you are interested in fashion design

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

Enchantress from the Stars (MG)

Enchantress from the Stars. Sylvia Louise Engdahl. 1970/2003. Penguin. 304 pages. 

From the prologue: The planet shines below us, cloud-flecked, dazzling against the dark backdrop of space. Down there it is cool and green and peaceful. In a little while we will take the ship out of orbit and leave this world behind, a mere speck in the vast currents of the universe. This world, which we call Andrecia--the third planet of a quite ordinary yellow sun...but that's just coincidence, of course. What difference does it make that just such a planet was my own people's ancestral home?

From chapter one: At the edge of the Enchanted Forest there lived a poor woodcutter who had four sons, the youngest of whom was named Georyn. They were able to earn a meager living by selling wood to the folk of the village, and although there was seldom more than dry bread or thin gruel on their table, they were not miserable.

Oh, how I LOVED Enchantress from the Stars. It was one of those oh-so-magical-practically-perfect-in-every-way books for me. I know not every reader will feel the same connection, the same adoration for this as I do. But. It's one of those books that I could just gush on and on about!!!

What did I love about this one? Everything! I loved the premise. Just loved it! I loved the world-building, the setting, the atmosphere. I loved the storytelling. I loved the characterization!!! I loved Elana. I loved Georyn. I loved Jarel. I even cared a great deal about the Starwatcher and Evrek. I thought this book was just so well written.

Enchantress from the Stars is narrated, primarily, by a young woman named Elana. The novel is reflective, in a way, because the novel is an account of her first 'adventure' on another planet. She's writing her report, giving her side of the story. But this novel is more than just her side of the story. It ventures to include the perspectives of two others--a young man, the woodcutter's youngest son, Georyn, and a young medical officer named Jarel. Both Georyn and Jarel are from Youngling cultures. Georyn is a native to Andrecia; Jarel is from another planet, a planet in a different stage than Georyn's, but a great deal less advanced than Elana's. (He is with the Imperial Exploration Corps). Jarel is just one of many in the first ship sent to "colonize" this planet.

Elana is on a ship with several other agents--including her father--when they learn that Andrecia is being invaded, and a Youngling culture/civilization is being threatened. They can't directly intervene. And they definitely can't reveal themselves. But they can try to influence things subtly, indirectly. Elana is chosen--with some reluctance--to interact with the natives. Well, she's to interact with two brothers--Terwyn and Georyn. These two are on a quest--along with their older brothers--to KILL A DRAGON. Yes, they are on their way to get the king's blessing, the king's permission to enter the Enchanted Forest. They don't know what dangers they'll face, but they know the fiery dragon must be stopped. These brothers see Elana an an enchantress, a faery perhaps. They see her as having great power, great wisdom, great magic.

So Enchantress from the Stars reads as a fantasy novel--a fantasy novel in the style of a fairy tale. But. Of course it also reads as a great science fiction novel with space ships, etc.

Enchantress from the Stars won a Newbery Honor in 1971.

Read Enchantress from the Stars

• If you love science fiction
• If you love fantasy
• If you love fairy tales
• If you love adventures and quests
• If you love great writing
• If you love bittersweet love stories
• If you're looking for a Newbery Honor

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

The Mighty Miss Malone (MG)

The Mighty Miss Malone. Christopher Paul Curtis. 2012. January 2012. Random House. 320 pages.

"Once upon a time...."
If I could get away with it, that's how I'd begin every essay I write.
Those are the four best words to use when you start telling about yourself because anything that begins that way always, always finishes with another four words, "...they lived happily everafter." 
And that's a good ending for any story.

The Mighty Miss Malone is in a way a companion novel to Bud, Not Buddy. It is set during the same time period, the late 1930s, during the Great Depression. Deza Malone does get a brief mention in Bud, Not Buddy--she's the young girl that gives Bud his first kiss. But. For the most part, The Mighty Miss Malone does stand alone.

The first chapter introduces readers to the Malone family. Deza takes great care in showcasing her family's strengths. She praises her brother's singing voice, noting how his singing wows just about everyone. And how his gift makes up for some of his faults. She also praises her mom--who works as a maid--and her father. The chapter also shows readers just how well Deza thinks of herself. She WANTS to be a writer so badly, she tries SO HARD to better herself, to learn as much as she can, but sometimes she tries a little too hard. Sometimes she just needs to be herself. As her teacher--who is retiring--tells her. She thinks Deza has great potential. That she could really do so much if she holds onto her dream. But she doesn't lie to Deza either, there will be tough times ahead.

As I mentioned, this novel is set during the Depression. And readers follow Deza on a tough, tough journey. The difficulties begin when her father and his friends go missing from their fishing trip. Days pass. No word. Bodies are found--but not his. And then--a miracle--of sorts. He's returned to them. Broken, bruised, changed in oh-so-many-ways, but alive. But his road to recovery won't be an easy one. And it may separate him--physically and emotionally--from those he loves best...

The Mighty Miss Malone is a bittersweet novel. It's a hope-filled novel, in my opinion. BUT. It is a novel that makes your heart ache. It just does. Some of the things that happen to the Malone family, well, they're crushing. But the Malones are resilient. And love and kisses and hope do seem to make a difference. I think the novel is very realistic and very well-written.

I would definitely recommend this one.



Read The Mighty Miss Malone

• If you're a fan of Christopher Paul Curtis (he's written some GREAT books including Bud, Not Buddy and The Watsons Go To Birmingham, 1963)
• If you're a fan of historical fiction
• If you want to read about the Depression (Bud, Not Buddy and The Mighty Miss Malone are much more reader-friendly than some other titles I could name)
• If you are interested in seeing poverty realistically portrayed (this novel felt very authentic)

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

Bud, Not Buddy (MG)

Bud, Not Buddy. Christopher Paul Curtis. 1999. Random House. 245 pages.

Here we go again. We were all standing in line waiting for breakfast when one of the caseworkers came in and tap-tap-tapped down the line. 

Some novels have me at hello. Bud, Not Buddy wasn't like that--for me. It was a novel that had to grow on me. It was a quiet novel, in a way, that in the end proved most satisfying. Chapter by chapter I came to know Bud Caldwell better, and I started to care about him. By the end, the novel felt just right, so perfectly right. It is easy to see why this one won awards!!!

Bud, Not Buddy is set in the 1930s during the Depression. It is set in Flint, Michigan, for the most part. Though this novel will see Bud setting out on quite a journey. He's an orphan, just eleven, in search of one simple thing: a father, a family, he's never known, never hoped to know. So what led him to begin this journey? Well, he had to run away from his last placement in a foster home. The family had a son who was a few years older, and, this boy was cruel and mean, and his parents were stupid enough to believe their son an angel. Could he have gone back to the Home? Maybe, maybe not. But isn't this ending worth it?!

Read Bud, Not Buddy:

• If you are looking for a historical read with plenty of heart and a good, satisfying ending

• If you are looking for books set during the Depression that are realistic but not depressing

• If you are looking to read a great Newbery winner with memorable characters

© 2012 Book of Just News To You